Hillary Clinton and Donald J. Trump will be the speakers for this year’s 71
st annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner, to be held Thursday, October 20, 2016 in the Grand Ballroom of New York’s Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. The presidential nominees will share the dais with Timothy Cardinal Dolan, Archbishop of New York, and they will deliver the evening’s keynote speeches in the spirit of collegiality and good-humor that has become a hallmark of the gala. In keeping with the longstanding tradition of the Foundation’s signature event, the evening offers the nominees an opportunity to come together with the country’s most prominent civic, business, and religious leaders to support charities that serve New York’s neediest children.

The Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner honors a cause that transcends the polarizing political rhetoric of the day and exemplifies the vision of Gov. Alfred E. Smith, known as “The Happy Warrior” for his ability to maintain his positive outlook even as he tackled the pressing social issues of his day. Over the course of seven decades, the delivery of keynote addresses by presidential candidates has become a mainstay at the dinner. Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Trump will join an illustrious list of political dignitaries, cultural leaders, and presidential candidates who have served as speakers, including John F. Kennedy, Winston Churchill, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan, Barack Obama, Tony Blair, Colin Powell, Tim Russert, Stephen Colbert, and many more. Last year’s speaker at the dinner was former Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Presided over by Cardinal Dolan, speakers at the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner often share self-deprecating humor as well as timely messages about the moral imperative of the Foundation’s mission.

The annual Dinner is dedicated to the memory of Alfred E. Smith, former Governor of the State of New York and the first Catholic to be nominated by a major political party as a candidate for President of the United States. The Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation has raised hundreds of millions to provide support for the neediest children in New York. Charities and educational institutions devoted to New York’s children are the beneficiaries of the event.